In his annual report to be presented soon, Israeli military spy chief Maj. Gen. Aviv Kochavi is warning of a serious prospect of a war breaking out between Israel and a neighbor soon, citing “increasingly Islamist” neighbors.

The “Islamist” comment seems primarily to be aimed at Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi, though it may also be targeting a rebel regime in Syria as well, as their leadership is overwhelmingly Sunni Islamist factions as well.

Of course when considering such a warning, one cannot forget that Israeli officials have been projecting imminent wars for years and holding out the old regimes as an example, so in reality this is just the same “warning” with a new spin.

The big change though, as Kochavi cautioned, is that wars could break out “without prior planning” now, apparently a sign that Israel can no longer just pencil in a war months in advance, as they did with the 2006 invasion of Lebanon or the 2008 invasion of the Gaza Strip, and simply build a narrative around why the war wasn’t their fault at their leisure.

Author: Jason Ditz

The imminent war against Iran has been in the planning stages for a long, long time. Both Israel and the U.S. are in partnership.

What hasn't been planned is the aftermath of an attack. That would require intelligence and commonsense, something that is in short supply in both countries.

Like a raging wildfire, it will start with a match. It will never be put out!

kebe

yes i need iran to stop its nuclear program and i know it doesn't want to stop. the only means to stop iran is using force. we have to stop and save our world

tom dee

Would you support bombing Israel to give up its nukes? Apparently the USa was pushing Egypt to attack an Iranian ship in the canal. If you want to save our world get rid of present elected officials in both nations.

Prior to 9-11 I remember reading that the Muslim religion was the fasting growing in the US, especially amongst the black community. Does this mean that Israel is planning to attack American communities because they are becoming "increasingly Islamic regions"? People choosing the Muslim religion over others is not evil or bad – it simply means that there must be some good behind the religion, no?

John_Muhammad

When last I checked, Islam was the fastest-growing religion in the US overall, and not just in the black community; we are gaining reverts (we use the term revert, not convert) every day from all ethnic groups represented in America. Even more telling, though, is the amount of single American women reverting on their own- and as it not allowed for a Muslim woman to marry outside the faith, that's a lot of birth potential we are gaining right here at home.

The fact is, a lot of American eyes are being opened to the fact that Islam itself is not evil or a cult or whatever the insult-of-the-day happens to be, it's not inherently oppressive towards women, it's not an outfit that calls for non-Muslim blood to be shed every time you turn around. Yes, we have our extremists and those who simply use the cloak of religion to commit evil acts, but Islam itself is not the cause of any of these- it is a total failing of the individual to properly implement Islamic teachings.

I was raised in both the Baptist and Methodist traditions, and later Catholic, but over time and through much study and reflection I found that for me Islam was the faith I had been missing. It can seem monolithic at times, but in no way is it any sort of 'obey or die' sort of faith it's painted to be, and while the boogeyman of shari'a law is much bandied about in the American media it's not the horrible thing its painted to be- sadly, only the more sensational (or made to be sensational) cases are presented to Joe Sixpack and as a result there is a skewed view of it in this country. We Muslims believe shari'a is the best system, but at the same time we also know- just like any other code of law or life- it is open to abuse by less than honorable individuals.

In short, just as with any religion, there are good and bad people who follow Islam; Islam itself is a beautiful faith and one which is growing and isn't going away.

ML3

Great post, John.

Umm Abdullah

Will someone please define 'Islamist'? It doesn't seem to mean what it used to mean, so those who use it should define it.

John_Muhammad

Islam = submission to Allah(swt) or God, depending on what name you use.

ist = one who believes in or promoted a particular thought or program

Islamist = one who believes in and promotes submission to God

Now, tell me how in the world THAT can ever be a bad thing? "Islamist" is just another boogeyman term that means nothing bad in itself, but it loaded with connotations by the media so as to give it a completely different- and bad- definition.

Umm Abdullah

I agree, and that's how it started out being used, but it seems that many people use it now as a synonym for 'terrorist'…

richard vajs

There is only one word to describe Israel – "Tribal". Here we are in the 21st century, and we still have this tribal society in which all members of the tribe are to be held blameless (it was your own fault, Rachel – you made that bulldozer run over you!) and every other member of the human race, who is not of your tribe, is out to get you so you better get him first.
There are bound to be compassionate, sophisticated people living in Israel – how do they live there without their heads blowing up? Or do they already have their bags packed?

ML3

most of them have already left, to be replaced by a growing number of disturbing fanatics from Brooklyn and parts of the former USSR.

james

So, to please Israel we should kill everyone around them because they are getting "increasingly Islamist"
How can anybody listen to this failure of a human project and not puke.

Bud Weiser

When you have a stash of over 200 nukes, you've invaded, bombed and attacked everyone else in the area, have committed war crimes with impunity and have the West backing and supporting you to distabilize the entire area, you don't need a crystal ball to predict that one.